Kitten help. NWR

Asheia · October 2009

I have this adorable kitten. I think he's great. Except a couple of minor problems. Maybe you guys can offer some advice? First, I can't get him to stop biting! I've tried stopping play/ignoring him when he bites, squirt bottle, and orange peels. None have phased him. Second, he steals my HOT tea not the iced tea only hot tea and my V8 fusion. Not V8 Splash. Only fusion. He is terrified of orange juice and never goes near my water, but hot tea and V8 Fusion...he's all over it. He even spilled my hot tea the other day and looked at me like I did it. He narrowed his eyes at me. Help. He's really starting to get on my nerves.

CandK2010 · October 2009

I just got a kitten, too. She bites REALLY hard. I usually just put her on the floor after she does it and ignore her. It seems to work, but sometimes it doesn't phase her at all... I think its just her age. She had been playing hard with her brothers and sisters her whole life, she just doesn't know how to tone it down yet in her new home.As far as the whole tea thing, I really don't know what to tell you. I suggest just putting it a place where he can't access it. We had to move tables around so our kitty doesn't get into things, especially so she doesn't hurt herself. Good luck and try to be patient with your new addition!

melishka716 · October 2009

It's his age. When we first got my cats as kittens, they would do that, too. In fact, one of them would be our disgusting alarm clock and lick or eyelids to wake up! It's a phase, and the good news about phases, is that they will pass. As for the drink issues, it's unusal, but not unheard of, for baby pets to do those things. BTW, my dog still tries to sneak drinks of my booze... Especially mixed, fruity drinks... lol I always have to make sure my glass is up high enough.

peachkins · October 2009

Ditto what Retread said as far as curbing the biting. And yeah, as far as the drinks, I would just make sure you put it somewhere out of the way when you're not near it. My cats will also drink out of our water glasses and knock them over, and if we leave butter on the table for more than a minute after dinner, he's all over it.

Witchys_Woman · October 2009

We tried the water method with our kittens and after a while they didn't care they were being sprayed. You have to be pretty tireless in your efforts and rest assured they do grow out of it eventually.

TurtlesAllTheWayDown · October 2009

Give him a tap on the nose with your fingertip, and a sharp, "NO!"This exactly.

Asheia · October 2009

Cool thanks guys for all the advice! He actually thinks the water is a game. The spray bottle is just another thing to attack. I hope he grows out of it. He has tons of toys including a couple of scratching posts. When we first got him my fiance went a bit crazy for cat toys. He loves to play fetch and refusing to play when he bites seems to be the only method that phases him. He is mischievous.

tidetravel · October 2009

I suggest another kitten. Then they can beat up on each other!

~mRm~ · October 2009

We found drinking straws really helpful when our kitties were in this stage. They will bite the crap out of them and not your fingers!

thedrval · October 2009

Scruffing the back of a kittens neck is very effective. Hold the kitten for about 20 seconds until its heart rate goes down. This mimics what a mother cat would do and is probably more effective then hitting the cats nose.

SueBee18 · October 2009

Kittens bite. That's just part of their development. They see it as playing. It is a natural instinct for them to bite / scratch / climb and pounce. I know it hurts since their little teeth are so sharp, but try to be patient with him. Do you have toys for him to play with? A scratching post that he can freely climb on or a toy he can bite to his hearts content may help. As for the tea, I also would say just keep it out of his reach as much as possible. Its like having a baby, you just have to make a few changes to the way things are set up so the kitty is out of harms way.Good luck!

Asheia · October 2009

He's six months old now. I thought that most of his bad behavior would be subsiding by now, but it really isn't. He has TONS of toys. He has several scratching posts, four plush toys he attacks and plays fetch with, some weird contraption that rocks and has feathers and various bells, a red box thingy that he acts like a hamster in...he "rolls" around the livingroom in it...very entertaining. I'm just exhausted by him coming out of no where biting me and running away. I know he knows biting is bad, but he still wants to do it. I'm a bit confused about the spraying his toys with catnip? He plays with them quite a bit and has never lost interest in any of them for more than an hour or so. I've never sprayed them, and the only toy he had with catnip was stolen by my other cat until the catnip wore off. I'm concerned the catnip would make him more nutso? He is really mean. Love him to death, but he is mean. I took him to the vet to be neutered and they made me pick him up early b/c he was biting everyone that tried to check on him. All the vet techs gave me dirty looks! I mean he was drugged and still vicious!

cherryT87 · October 2009

I'm sorry that sucks. My kitten is kind of like that even more so when I clean the house, he feels the need to attack my leg then run off. I know this sounds bad but on another cat I had to use a non rinse flea spray (giving her bath is just out of the question) turns out she would rather have a bath I picked that spray bottle up to move it one and she ran so after that I would grab that bottle when she would do something wrong and after a few times she wouldn't do it again. She was an indoor cat and I didn't have a screen door so on nice days I would open my front door and put the bottle in the middle of the door way and she would stay away from the door. good luck on finding your right method. I still haven't found the right method for my new one though.

JamieK1882 · October 2009

I have a new adorable kitten with the same problem. He is about 2 months old (according to the vet) but he is a stray and my aunt think he is older (found at her house).anyways, I tried the waterbottle but he now thinks that is a toy and opens his mouth to get a drink when I go to squirt him lol. I also tried the tapping the nose and "no!" trick but that doestn work.I read online to push down gently on their tongue because to them that feels like "biting them back." This also doesnt work.Let me know if you find an answer that works!

Kitten help. NWR

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